"EXETER DAILY" NEWSPAPER ANNOUNCES RELEASE OF LOVE AT SUNSET!

The "Exeter Daily" newspaper, Devon, England, has announced the release of my romantic suspense novel “Love at Sunset”:-

EXETER DAILY - ROMANTIC SUSPENSE NOVEL EXPLORES SECOND CHANCES

Exeter is where I spent many impressionable and informative years.

FREELANCING IN THE BAHAMAS!

Fay covering an event in Town Centre Mall, Nassau, Bahamas
(former Police Assistant Superintendent Allerdyce Strachan rt.)

One day, in the early nineties, I quit my day job! I ran an ad in a local newspaper “Writer available”. I only received one reply and that was from an ex bank manager that we knew. He owned and operated a villa and car rental business and wanted me to put together the text for some brochures.

I took the assignment on with great delight, but still listened for the phone to ring with more enquiries. I had just about given up when I had a call from a local mall (again it was someone we knew). He asked me if I’d be interested in taking promotional photos at events held in the mall.

I drove to Town Centre Mall, armed with a camera and note pad (remember, those were the days before iPhones!). I threw myself into the project, not only taking photos of events and goings on in the mall, but writing about them. I also interviewed shop owners and wrote features to promote their businesses.

Every week, I would have copies made at a local photographer’s shop of my black and white photos, and then attach typed captions to the photos with a paper clip. The photos would go into an envelope along with my feature articles and I’d then run around town, dropping them off to each newspaper. I’d usually take the time to have a little chat with the editors.

The articles appeared with my byline in every local newspaper every week for as long as I worked at the mall. I would write one basic version of the article, and then edit it to suit each newspaper. The local tabloid required articles short and sweet; I’d aim my article at the youth page of another newspaper; the other two received the original article.

I still use this technique in my non fiction. It often comes in handy with press releases. Also, if a short story is rejected I can easily adapt it for another market. But everything is high tech now. How times have changed!

THE CRAFT OF SHORT STORY WRITING

I’m getting back to my short story writing again and submitting stories to magazines in the U.K. and U.S. 

As bestselling author and master of short stories Stephen King said in one of his videos that I watched the other day, the short story is a special art form and you can get out of practice with short stories if you just write novels. 

Of course, many writers only want to write novels and that’s okay. But if you’re a lover of short stories, which I am, you don’t want to lose the touch! I won't neglect my next novel though!

CUTTING A WATERSPOUT!

The violent thunderstorms yesterday had our social media buzzing. Erskine said he spotted waterspouts in the distance as he was passing the Lynden Pindling Airport, not AT the airport as someone from here told an American TV station when they sent them a photo of a waterspout mistakenly described as a tornado forming!

Cars were lined up on the airport road, residents fascinated by nature’s powerful formations. The waterspouts didn't come on land, but stayed out on the sea.

When he was a growing up on Long Island Erskine says they used to “cut” the waterspouts as they appeared in the distance. One of the ways they did this was by pointing their arms towards the waterspouts and using a cutting motion with one wrist across the other. Other methods were to use two sticks or a fork and knife. Erskine says he doesn’t know if it was coincidence, but the waterspouts would dissolve!

Click here for a Tribune article "Waterspouts over Lake Killarney"

DIARY OF A NOVEL!

"LOVE AT SUNSET" - THE MANUSCRIPT

Two years ago, I wrote on Facebook that I was “having such fun with my new romantic suspense novel” (Love at Sunset)!

I posted, “It's set in The Bahamas and Scotland. I started writing it on June 6^th [2014], the 70th anniversary of ‘D Day' (very appropriate date to start, don't you think?!). I just love it! It's going really well and the words are flowing. I've written four chapters so far and am well into Chapter Five.”

I then posted on August 3rd, 2014 (two months later), “I've just finished the first draft of my novel - 30 chapters and around 80,000 words. Hooray! Now I have to start the editing process, in order to polish it up and get it ready to submit to agents.”

Who would ever have predicted back then that Love at Sunset would now be available all over the world. And I’m so glad I diarized the novel’s progress on Facebook!

SUNBEAMS FROM THE HEART POPULAR WITH AUSTRALIAN OLD TIMERS!

I was thrilled to hear from a cousin in Australia that after she read my book “Sunbeams from the Heart – A Collection of Twelve Romantic Short Stories”, the book has been “doing the rounds”, to the old residents where she works. She says some of the people are in their nineties and have thoroughly enjoyed reading the book. Their comments range from “a pleasure to read” to “easy to read” to “very enjoyable” to “lovely stories”.

My cousin says, “It has been a very suitable book for this age group, as they would not bother reading a novel, so the short stories and clear print make it easy for them to manage.”

It gives me such a wonderful feeling to know that so many readers out there are enjoying “Sunbeams from the Heart”, especially those who are confined to a residential home.

THE BAHAMAS - COMMUNICATIONS AND HURRICANE ALERTS THEN AND NOW!

Nassau, Bahamas, while Hurricane Joaquin was in the region

With the hurricane season now upon us (June through November) and all the alerts we receive by television or internet, I asked my husband Erskine how they learned of approaching storms on Long Island, Bahamas, as he was growing up. He was born and brought up there.  

He remembers a lady down the road who had a telephone in her store. She would receive news from Nassau of a tropical storm or hurricane in the area and spread the news. The Out Island Commissioners would also play an active part in alerting residents.

Erskine says after he moved to Nassau at the age of fifteen he remembers his late parents were given a radio, but they couldn’t receive ZNS, the national radio station of The Bahamas, at night. However, they got an excellent reception from Bonaire Radio on the Caribbean island of Bonaire and used to listen to some great music in the evenings from there.

Erskine’s parents would be amazed to see all the modern facilities Long Island has now, including television and internet! At the recent Long Island Sailing Regatta, which is held annually in Salt Pond, as fast as attendees snapped photos they were instantly shared on Facebook and other social media. Who would have ever thought back in those days that this would ever be a regular practice on Long Island!

LOVE AT SUNSET IN BUY THE BOOK!

"Love at Sunset" in "Buy the Book", Saunders Beach, Nassau

Janice Cartwright, owner of "Buy the Book", Saunders Beach,
serving a customer . "Love at Sunset" bottom right!

I popped into “Buy the Book”, Saunders Beach, Nassau, yesterday and was delighted to see that the owner Janice Cartwright had brought in additional copies of my romantic suspense novel “Love at Sunset” when she placed orders for customers!